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IntroductionDyslipidemia is associated with increased rho-associated kinase 2 (ROCK2) concentration. Whether moderate aerobic exercise could attenuate leukocyte ROCK2 concentration is unknown.Material and methodsOne hundred subjects with dyslipidemia and without statin treatment were enrolled and assigned to exercise and control groups. In the exercise group, at least 30 min of moderate aerobic exercise per day 5 times weekly was recommended. In the control group, participants were recommended to undertake exercise of the same intensity as the exercise group but not mandatorily. At baseline and 3 months later, between-group differences were compared.ResultsAt baseline, dyslipidemia in both groups was characterized by increased serum levels of total cholesterol and low density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C). Serum high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) level was comparably increased too, and the average daily exercise time was extremely low: 5.8 ±2.7 min and 6.2 ±3.1 min respectively. Leukocyte ROCK2 concentration in the two groups was 38.4 ±7.5 mg/ml and 40.2 ±8.2 mg/ml respectively. Three months later, compared with the control group, average daily exercise time was significantly longer in the exercise group (37.4 ±4.3 min vs. 16.5 ±7.5 min, p < 0.05). Leukocyte ROCK2 concentration was also significantly reduced (27.6 ±4.3 mg/ml vs. 34.6 ±5.2 mg/ml, p < 0.05). Serum nitric oxide (NO) concentration in the exercise group was significantly higher than the control group (p < 0.05). Multivariate linear regression analysis revealed that NO and exercise time were significantly associated with leukocyte ROCK2 concentration after adjusting for traditional risk factors.ConclusionsModerate aerobic exercise could effectively attenuate leukocyte ROCK2 concentration in subjects with dyslipidemia.

Background Iron-overloaded patients are recognized as presenting an increased risk of osteoporosis. However, studies on the correlation between osteoporosis and organ iron overload are controversial or scarce. The aim of this study is to assess bone mineral density (BMD) and trabecular bone score (TBS) in correlation with hepatic and pancreatic iron overload. Methods Forty-one patients diagnosed with hemoglobinopathies, were studied. BMDs of the lumbar spine (LS), femoral neck (FN), and total hip (TH) were analyzed by Dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) scan. LS bone quality was derived from each spine DXA examination using the TBS analysis. Hepatic and pancreatic iron overload were obtained with a multi-echo gradient echo T2* technique. Results Abnormal microarchitecture and abnormal bone mass were observed in 19/41 (46.3%) and 9/41 (22.0%) patients, respectively. For 26 males, BMD, T-score and Z-score of LS were significantly lower among subjects with moderate-severe hepatic iron-overload than their counterparts, as it is between no- and pancreatic iron-overload groups. For 15 females, patients with moderate-severe hepatic iron-overload had significantly lower BMD and T-score of FN and TH, and patients with pancreatic iron-overload had significantly lower BMD, T-score of FN, and lower BMD, T-score and Z-score of TH than their counterparts. Moreover, pancreatic T2*-value was positively correlated with BMD and T-score at all analyzed sites and Z-score at TH. Conclusion These data showed lower bone mass in patients with organ iron overload, particularly for LS in males, FN and TH in females. TBS may well represent a complementary tool for the evaluation of bone quality and the risk of fracture in iron-overloaded patients.

Objectives: To investigate whether and how meniscal height is associated with osteoarthritis (OA)-related knee structural changes in symptomatic knee OA. Methods: We studied 106 patients (61 female, aged 40–73 years) with symptomatic knee OA. X-ray was used for Kellgren-Lawrence score. Meniscal body heights and extrusion were measured on coronal sections of intermediate-weighted MRI sequence. Knee structural changes were assessed using the modified whole-organ magnetic resonance imaging score (WORMS). Associations between meniscal body height and knee structural changes were assessed using linear regression analysis. Results: Higher medial meniscal body height was significantly associated with severe medial meniscal lesions (p = 0.001–0.023), medial compartmental cartilage lesions (p = 0.045), patellofemoral compartmental and medial compartmental bone marrow edema patterns (p = 0.001–0.037), anterior cruciate ligament and patellar ligament abnormalities (p = 0.020–0.023), and loose bodies (p = 0.017). However, lateral meniscal body height was negatively correlated with WORMS scores for lateral meniscal lesions (p ≤ 0.018), lateral compartmental cartilage lesions (p ≤ 0.011), and lateral compartmental bone marrow edema patterns (p = 0.038). Conclusion: Higher medial meniscal body height was associated with more severe medial compartment structural abnormalities and patellofemoral bone marrow edema patterns, while lateral meniscal body height was inversely correlated with the severity of lateral compartment structural abnormalities. Advances in knowledge: Our study revealed that meniscal body height was associated with multiple OA-related knee structural changes, which would be beneficial in identifying patients with or at risks for knee OA.

Background Meniscal morphological changes are associated with knee OA. However, the correlation of meniscal height and OA-related knee structural abnormalities is still not well understood. The purpose of present study is to investigate whether and how meniscal anterior and posterior horn heights are associated with structural abnormalities in knees with symptomatic OA. Methods Our sample consisted of 106 patients (61 female, aged 40–73 years) with symptomatic knee OA. Kellgren-Lawrence system was used for radiographic evaluation. On sagittal sequence, medial meniscal posterior horn height (MPH), lateral meniscal anterior horn height (LAH) and lateral meniscal posterior horn height (LPH) were measured on the middle slice through the medial/lateral compartment. Knee structural abnormalities were assessed using the modified whole-organ magnetic resonance imaging score (WORMS). Associations between meniscal anterior and posterior horn heights and knee structural abnormalities were assessed using linear regression analysis. Results Higher MPH was significantly associated with higher WORMS score for medial meniscal anterior horn lesion (P = 0.016) but did not have a statistical association with other WORMS parameters. Increased LAH was statistically correlated with decreased WORMS scores for lateral compartmental cartilage lesions (P = 0.001–0.004) and lateral compartmental bone marrow edema patterns (BMEPs) (P = 0.021–0.027). Moreover, LPH was negatively associated with WORMS scores for lateral compartmental cartilage lesions (P = 0.007–0.041) and lateral compartmental BMEPs (P = 0.022–0.044). Additionally, higher MPH was statistically associated with lower trochlea cartilage WORMS score and higher LAH was significantly correlated with higher WORMS score for trochlea subarticular cysts. Conclusions Changes of LAH and LPH were inversely associated with the severity of lateral compartmental cartilage lesions and BMEPs, while higher MPH was only significantly correlated with more severe medial meniscal anterior horn lesions. Besides, MPH and LAH were also significantly associated with patellofemoral structural abnormalities. The present study provided novel information for understanding the role of meniscal morphological changes in knee OA, which would be helpful in identifying and evaluating knees with or at risks for OA.